New Puget Sound Navy Museum exhibit to celebrate 250 years of Navy history

New Puget Sound Navy Museum exhibit to celebrate 250 years of Navy history

By Ben Hutto, PSNS & IMF Public Affairs

The Puget Sound Navy Museum is set to open a new exhibit featuring the daily lives of U.S. Navy Sailors throughout the service's 250-year history, with an emphasis on life at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard & Intermediate Maintenance Facility.

The exhibition, "Celebrate - The Legacy of the Sea," opens Sept. 26 at 10 a.m., with keynote addresses from Rear Adm. Christopher A. Nash, commander, Submarine Group 9, Task Group 114, and former Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Rick D. West (Retired), the 12th MCPON, beginning at 11:30 a.m.

"This exhibit is designed to give visitors a sense of what it's like to be a Sailor in the U.S. Navy," said Megan Churchwell, curator, Puget Sound Naval Museum. "While many things from the 1700s look similar to today, things have obviously changed in 250 years."

The exhibit will feature aspects of Sailor life throughout the service's long, proud history.

The exhibit features many artifacts that were on ships with connections to PSNS & IMF and the city of Bremerton. Navy ships took American culture from the Pacific Northwest and shared it with the world as those ships traversed the globe, Churchwell said.

"A great example is baseball," she explained. "Sailors serving in Asia post-World War II shared that with the people there and it took off. It was just one example of how the Navy took our culture across the world."

In addition, museum visitors will also get to see unique aspects of Navy culture in the exhibit. A shipboard tattoo kit from 1906, coffee mugs from a chief's mess, and items used by Sailors while they were on watch are just a few of the interesting artifacts that will enlighten visitors who never served and remind veterans of the traditions they left behind.

The exhibit will debut in grand style, with a free performance from the Pacific Northwest Navy Band at 5:30 p.m., and STEM activities for children throughout the day.

"We've been working on this exhibit for the last year," said Carolyn Lane, museum educator, Puget Sound Naval Museum. "I think it will highlight a lot of aspects of Sailor culture that many might not be aware of. We hope people enjoy it."